The theme for our November book display is The history of the “Cold War” and beyond. The Cold War formally ended in mid-November 1990 with the signing of a treaty in Paris France by the leaders of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). There are questions rising today that we may be escalating back into the mind set of the Cold War era. Come visit the history and possibly find something of interest for a research paper and judge for yourself.

We have some deadly reading suggestions for Halloween! Take a look at our Halloween book display (ever check out a book from a coffin?) How about:

Spook: science tackles the afterlife

Small book of grave humor

Mourner’s dance: what we do when people die

Old Souls: scientific evidence for past lives

Congress has designated October as National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). The Office of Disability Employment Policy’s goal is to increase the public’s awareness of the contributions and skills of American workers with disabilities. Efforts to educate the American public on issues related to disability and employment actually began in 1945 with Congress passing a law declaring the first week in October each year as “National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week.” In 1988, Congress expanded the week to a month and changed the name to “National Disability Employment Awareness Month.” Although physical disabilities are often recognized, invisible disabilities are sometimes difficult to recognize or understand. Join the Todd Library in celebrating National Disability Employment Awareness Month and visit us to learn more about some of these “invisible” issues.

Come in and check out our display on world pollution at the reference desk. The Blacksmith Institute, an independant environmental group, has recently published it’s Report on World’s Worst Polluted Places. The Institute evaluates the level of pollution in locations by taking into consideration how much pollution impacts the lives of people, especially children. Here are the top ten Most Polluted Places for 2007:

• Sumgayit, Azerbaijan
• Linfen, China
• Tianying, China
• Sukinda, India
• Vapi, India
• La Oroya, Peru
• Dzerzhinsk, Russia
• Norilsk, Russia
• Chernobyl, Ukraine
• Kabwe, Zambia

Stop by the library to find out more!

Banned Books Week:  Celebrating the Freedom to Read is observed during the last week of September each year.  Observed since 1982, this annual American Library Association event reminds Americans not to take this freedom for granted.  This year marks its 26th anniversary (September 29 through October 6).

BBW celebrates the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion may be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those viewpoints to all who wish to read them.   Intellectual freedom exists only where these two essential conditions are met. Visit the Todd Library to check out a banned book and learn more.